Elopements and Micro-Weddings: How They Differ From Traditional Weddings

Imagine you’re newly engaged, you have that glow about you, and the excitement of your wedding day follows you each day as you see friends, family, and coworkers. There’s no better feeling! Once that feeling settles and the congratulations subside, you’ll start to plan the ultimate day to celebrate your love. 

This usually involves some research on wedding photography and videography packages, envisioning the look of everything, and the hardest part: deciding how many people you want to attend.

The modern couple is no longer given a one-size-fits-all wedding recipe where they call the nearest church and let their parents decide on the guest list. All in all, this is a good thing! Having autonomy when it comes to your wedding is now the norm – which has resulted in a handful of alternative structures.

You may have heard wedding-related buzzwords online and wondered, what does it mean to elope? What is a micro-wedding? What’s the difference between an elopement vs. a wedding? Let’s hash out the differences between these celebration styles and discuss the pros and cons of each.

Elopements

Elopements have always had a certain connotation to them, but they’ve rapidly transformed into one of the trendiest ways to get married. But an elopement is not just a trend. In fact, it’s one of the most thoughtful and intentional ways to seal the deal with your beloved partner. 

Gone are the days when an elopement is categorized as illegitimate, shameful, or secretive. Although privacy is still an important element in this treasured ceremony style, it’s more about the experience that the couple wants to have than an effort to hide from other people. Many of the best PNW elopement locations feel private because of their remote nature, letting the couple focus on their ceremony rather than curious onlookers.

That brings us to the point that many elopers, especially those who choose an Oregon elopement, like to prioritize nature on their wedding day. Getting married in some of the most beautiful places on earth is one of the main reasons people choose to elope. 

Put simply, you’re not held back by choosing a venue that can accommodate a lot of people — you can truly follow your dreams and do whatever you want on your wedding day. An elopement typically has 20 or fewer guests or no guests at all.

Pros: Endless possibilities for elopement locations, ability to feature places that are beautiful and remote throughout your day, privacy and intimacy, affordability, and full autonomy over your wedding day.

Cons: You might come up against friends and family who don’t support your decision or feel hurt if they’re not invited. Be prepared for some pushback if there are people in your circle who are expecting a traditional wedding!

Micro-Weddings

If you’ve ever wondered what a micro-wedding is, you’re not alone, as it’s a rather new concept in the world of weddings. At its core, a micro-wedding is nothing new — it’s just a small wedding that usually consists of less than 50 people.

But, like elopements, micro-weddings don’t follow a standard wedding format. The couple can easily plan a day that reflects their interests and character without worrying about long guest lists and restrictive measures from conventional wedding venues. In fact, micro-wedding couples often can’t book conventional venues since many have a minimum head count.

Instead, you’ll usually find a micro-wedding held at an unusual location. A bowling alley, backyard, or beachside hut are all on the table for micro-weddings in pursuit of a unique and memorable experience. The main goal? Have a tailor-made wedding day that encapsulates the two lovers and their story.

Pros: Endless possibilities for elopement locations, the ability to feature beautiful and unique locations, the company of only your closest friends and family, affordability, and full autonomy over your wedding day.

Cons: Once again, navigating the relationships of friends and family that may be left out of your micro-wedding day can be a difficult task. Also, a smaller celebration also may not suit everyone’s vision for an epic wedding day.

Traditional Weddings

A traditional wedding is probably something you’ve experienced before. If you’ve been in a traditional wedding, it is an all-day, exhaustive (but fun) affair. As a guest, you usually arrive in the late afternoon, attend a ceremony, have cocktail hour, dinner, toasts, so on and so forth.

A traditional wedding tends to be around 100 people or more. For many couples, the guest list can easily creep up to 200, 300, or even 400 people (whew!). Tradition calls for a venue that accommodates that extensive guest list, which will greatly impact the overall experience of your wedding day.

The reason many people opt for an elopement or micro-wedding over a traditional wedding really does come down to location and the overall vibe that the environment provides. In other words, you have choices — there’s no denying that your options are limited when you have an extensive guest list.

Pros: Enjoy a big party with all your family and friends, more gifts and monetary support for your journey as newlyweds, high energy, standard wedding format that is tried and true.

Cons: Limited in the location, activities, food, and overall plans you can make. Large weddings are also a lot more expensive and complex, requiring some intensive planning and logistics to make it run smoothly.

Conclusion

Overall, you’ll find that couples who elope or have a micro-wedding have a lot more freedom in the planning process and day-of. Large weddings are naturally restrictive and require a lot of planning and coordination to avoid timing issues, meltdowns, and awkward moments.

For elopements and micro-weddings, an awkward moment is a puff in the wind that blows over quickly and easily because the people attending are the closest to you. You can be casual, tell a joke during your ceremony, ugly-cry, and it really doesn’t matter. Because your wedding day doesn’t feel performative when you keep your circle small and the activities true to you.

Traditional weddings will always have their place in the grand scheme of love. They are magnificent, and generally, your cup is overflowing with the love you feel from friends and family by the end of the day. 

But, traditional weddings aren’t the only option anymore, as they once were. And that’s why we love elopements and micro-weddings. Because if you don’t want a large crowd, a popular venue, or to put aside a large budget, you can still get married to the love of your life!

That’s something worth celebrating (and documenting!). If you’re searching for a PNW elopement photographer and videographer, you’re in the right place. Contact us today to get Ash and Rain in on the scoop for your wedding day — we’d love to meet you!